‘Rainbow Family’ is a huge online hit, despite China still banning LGBT themes from mainland broadcasts.

The 20 minute sitcom has been celebrated as a huge step for the LGBT community in China – despite not being aired on TV. That doesn’t matter though, as online the first season of the show has been watched 24million times across all platforms.

Dubbed China’s Will & Grace, Rainbow Family centres around a 24 year-old gay college graduate who is not out to his parents. He hangs out with his straight female friend who is boy crazy and always trying to hook him up with men, his gay roommate and his clingy ex.

Rainbow Family is produced by Ling Jueding, who is the CEO of gay social network, Zank.

He hopes that the show can give the LGBT community some visibility in a country where homosexuality is still listed as an “unhealthy topic regarding sex” that should not be included in broadcasts for the protection of minors.

“Most Chinese people aren’t hardcore homophobic,” Ling told Fusion.net. “They just would rather remain ignorant about homosexuality unless it starts to affect them in some real way.”

“I hope this show can provide a real and positive portrayal of the lives of gay and lesbians, just like Will & Grace did for Americans.”

Watch the first two episodes below: